Letter from the PRF Chair

Greetings PRA members!

As this year comes to a close, I want to start by wishing all of you the best of holiday seasons. No matter how we celebrate, this is a time for coming together with family, friends, and colleagues. For me, this is always a time of reflection for both the successes as well as the challenges that have come over the past year. Among the many joyful events in my own life in 2014, I recently attended the Army-Navy football game in Baltimore, Maryland. In full disclosure, one of my nephews is in the First-Class (i.e., a senior) at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. I mention this less as a proud Aunt (although I am), but more as a mental health professional, because aspects of experiencing this event in person were remarkably transformational.

Sitting with all the other family and friends at the game, we watched in silence with respect as close to 9,000 young men and women marched on the field together – half from the U.S. Naval Academy and half from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. These young people – most of them between the ages of 17 and 22 – have already chosen to devote their lives and careers to our armed forces. They have endured grueling physical challenges, met stringent academic requirements, and demonstrated the emotional maturity necessary to thrive at two of our nation’s military service academies. As I watched the Brigade of Midshipmen and Corps of Cadets come together for this historic sporting event, what was focal in my mind was the commitment that they have made to our country and its protection so early in their lives. In just about six months, these young adults will be deployed away from family and friends, many into harm’s way. They will witness violence, encounter societies fraught with oppression, and in many cases, experience the loss of fellow service members. Others themselves will be wounded or disabled. Some will make the ultimate sacrifice of their own lives. These young people, like those who elect to enlist in our nation’s armed forces, are future veterans who will rely on our support and services once they return from these deployments.

We are at a critical point in mental health services and psychiatric rehabilitation where we have the opportunity to advance the recovery of individuals who experience mental health issues. Clearly, our field has been a leader in developing and implementing services for Veterans and their families. We also have the unique opportunity to influence and promote recovery of young people and emerging adults. What I experienced, was the concreteness of the intersection of youth and military service. As these young people embark in their careers, I believe we must strengthen the resolve in our own work to ensure that the services and supports we offer Veterans and their families meet the same standards of excellence that characterize the 9,000 young men and women that I saw on the field.

In the coming year, I look forward to all of us working together to not only address these issues within our service programs and clinics, but also to ensure that our mental health and recovery workforce has the training and skills necessary to meet the needs of these wounded warriors, many of them still young adults. This is a critical responsibility for the field of mental health because not all wounds will be visible.

Be well this holiday season, and remember those who are serving both at home and abroad.